Who shoots with a laser: What guns and why?

[Redcoat3340]

Shot a gun with a laser sight for the first time last week. It was a long gun (fella was shooting it at 15 yards, indoors, with a can on the end in 5.56 I think. Don't ask.)

But I was interested.

I've always shot iron sights on my handguns, both pistol and revolver. Never really considered a laser.

So I'm wondering how many folks use 'em and on what type of guns.

I was thinking of putting laser grips on a S&W 642PC as it's for close up work (if, god forbid) I ever had to use it. Or maybe getting one of those pocket rockets ala a Taurus G2s (just to have one) and putting a laser on it.)

But do folks put them on their semis ala a Smith 4513 or Beretta PX4c. Or on other revolvers, say a Smith 66-2?

My eyes ain't getting any younger (into their 70th decade) but with my specs I see just fine. Do folks aging peepers find the laser easier/better to shoot that regular iron (or even red dot optics)?

And then what's a good model without breaking the bank and going all "tactical?"

 

[Meeks36]

Had one for my G19 sold it shortly after. Just not for me. I don’t want to be looking for the dot if and when something happens. But that’s just me.

 

[1942bull]

I tried red and green lasers on my LC9s just to evaluate them. I tried a red laser on my PPS M2. I was trying to evaluate the benefit to me as a 79 year old with 79 year old eyes. I ended up not using any of them. Don’t take that as a rejection of their possible benefit. My decision to not use them or red dot sights was based upon other factors. I will elaborate.

All my adult life I have been a minimalist who meets needs and mostly, but not always, disregards wants. I also think that self-defense is best facilitated by employing basic techniques. Accordingly, I do not rely upon things that are dependent upon bayberries and switches. So I decided that I would not employ sighting devices other than iron sights or the equivalent in hi-viz. I think if I flew an airplane I would not use auto-pilot much, if at all.

 

[FL-NC]

The only handgun I have with a laser is my nightstand gun- Glock 19 with insight light/laser combo. Otherwise, I don't have a use for anything with a laser, unless is IR and I'm doing something with night vision, which I don't.

 

[Riomouse911]

A few years ago I used to see folks shooting pistols at the indoor range with laser dots flitting all around their targets on a regular basis.

The past couple of years I think the allure has faded with the popularity of micro red dot sights, I don’t see laser dots at the range anymore.

Stay safe.

 

[shoobe01]

Almost all my rifles have a laser. Some of them are dual band, can be switched from IR to green.

 

[BoBo522]

I put lasers on several of my EDCs - the P365 has a green Lima, the LCR has a green Hogue LE grip, and the LCP has a red Lasermax.

I think I paid $250 or so for the Lima, $350 or so for the Hogue, and around $90 for the Lasermax.

I also have red dots on several of my handguns. Which is better? I guess that’s situational. I find the red dot is generally a more accurate sighting system, but it depends on being able to pick up the dot quickly - if you have a less-than-stellar presentation, it takes a second or two “stirring” the muzzle until the dot becomes visible.

With a laser, the laser dot “wobbles” much more obviously which can be a drawback until you learn not to “chase” it. You can almost always pick it up quickly - bright daylight can wash it out though, even a bright green beam.

I think they’re both useful tools. I prefer the laser for an EDC and a red dot plus a light for a home defense pistol.

 

[DTL]

My Beretta 9mm APX, S&W Shield 2.0, and my Ruger LCPII all have LaserMax Gripsense green. Two are trigger guard mount, the Beretta rail mount.

 

[hemiram]

My "House Gun", a Sar CM9 G2 has one of those Laserlyte center mass lasers on it. It works great, they were $25 when they closed them out and I bought two of them. The second one is a spare in case the one on the gun dies. It puts a circle of dots with one in the center, and I don't see how it's possible to miss, unless it's in bright daylight and the red beams are washed out. A friend and I have taken it to the range and one thing it does is show how steady your hands are. When it's 50 ft, my friend can barely keep it on target. At 30 feet he does ok. I have rock steady hands and I can shoot very accurately with it, both in center mass and with just the center dot. It solves the "old man" eye hassles pretty well. If I could shoot half as well with regular sights, I would be thrilled.

I can't find a good pic of the red laser, but it looks like this:

 

[Lineman65]

My wife has a Crimson Trace laser grip on her J Frame. She uses it for carry and as her bedside gun. She likes it very much, as do I. I’m not sure why they’re not more widely used for a defensive handgun.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

I prefer a light hands down over a laser as I want to confirm my target. Not doing raids in my current life.

My house Beretta 92 has a light and Crimson Trace laser grips on it. I like the grips as it adds little to no bulk.

 

[chicharrones]

My only long term experience with pistol lasers has been with pocket pistols. One on my shootin' buddy's Ruger LCP and one on my Taurus 85UL.

I really, really like a laser on pocket pistols and home defense pistols. My middle aged eyes can't see pistol sights well, especially in low light. My eyes can't see tritium dots like they used to, and while I have fiber optic sights on a couple home defense/carry guns . . . well, they need quite a bit of light to be visible.

I know from lots of dry fire practice with my Taurus 85UL, that a laser can be easily learned for shooting. Plus it gives great feedback on trigger control while dry firing.

I really like the laser grip models over all other versions as they are unobtrusive and instant on when the gun is gripped firmly. Not to mention that you can turn a fixed sight gun into an adjustable sight gun by adding a good laser sight.

BTW, no one is going to make a pistol laser dot stay still on a target at the range. As long as your hits are tightly together and where you wanted them to go, that's what matters.

I need to order a CT laser grip for another gun. I love 'em on self defense revolvers for some reason.

 

[unclenunzie]

LCP gen 1 has a CT laser grip, and my 642 also. The 642 CT 150 for some reason gives me a better grip yet still remains small. Like it better than the standard boot grips.

 

[lee n. field]

Shot a gun with a laser sight for the first time last week. It was a long gun (fella was shooting it at 15 yards, indoors, with a can on the end in 5.56 I think. Don't ask.)

But I was interested.

I've always shot iron sights on my handguns, both pistol and revolver. Never really considered a laser.

So I'm wondering how many folks use 'em and on what type of guns.

I was thinking of putting laser grips on a S&W 642PC as it's for close up work (if, god forbid) I ever had to use it. Or maybe getting one of those pocket rockets ala a Taurus G2s (just to have one) and putting a laser on it.)

I have Crimson Trace lasergrips on my Taurus and S&W snubs, and will probably eventually get one for the LCRx I'm currently carrying.

I like them just fine. As grips, they're quite nice. Changing to shooting to the dot on the target from aiming down the sights, was trivial.

Caveats --

• get one with instinctive activation. Anything that has to be turned on with a manual switch or button, is just not going to get used in an emergency.
• daylight washes out red lasers. If you can't see the dot you're going to switch to hunting for the dot, which you do not want to do. Green is said to be better, or maybe go with a green fiberoptic front sight for daylight use and leave the laser for lower light situations.
• a lasergrip is fine. A laser mounted anywhere else means you probably need a new holster, and your options go way (waaaaay) down.

But do folks put them on their semis ala a Smith 4513 or Beretta PX4c. Or on other revolvers, say a Smith 66-2?

I have a CT Laserguard for my XDS. I don't use it, because I haven't found a holster that I think is much good that accomodates it (including the BladeTech AmbiKlipt CT sometimes bundles with it).

My eyes ain't getting any younger (into their 70th decade) but with my specs I see just fine. Do folks aging peepers find the laser easier/better to shoot that regular iron (or even red dot optics)?

Every time I've messed with a red dot sight, I've ended up hunting for the dot, steering the pistol around trying to pick up the dot.

I'm 66 (where does the time go?), and not needing them. Yet.

And then what's a good model without breaking the bank and going all "tactical?"

Crimson Trace is good, but is pricey. Hogue has some, their "Laser Enhanced" line, variants of some of their existing grips. They're less expensive, but I don't see much out there in the way of reviews of them.

 

[lee n. field]

I put lasers on several of my EDCs - the P365 has a green Lima, the LCR has a green Hogue LE grip, and the LCP has a red Lasermax.

I'm contemplating that Hogue, for my LCRx. How's it working for you? Likes/dislikes?

With a laser, the laser dot “wobbles” much more obviously which can be a drawback until you learn not to “chase” it. You can almost always pick it up quickly - bright daylight can wash it out though, even a bright green beam.

Lasers wobble, because shooters aren't as rock solid as they think they are, and the laser shows it.

 

[BoBo522]

I'm contemplating that Hogue, for my LCRx. How's it working for you? Likes/dislikes?

I love it. Very easy to install. Includes a tiny (.028”?) Allen wrench to adjust windage and elevation, out of the box was pretty close. Same Tamer-style with shock-absorbing insert as the stock grip. Activation is effortless with a proper grip.

I had to shave a tiny bit on a Kydex holster to accommodate the laser emitter, but it fits my leather holsters fine.

Programmable with 4 brightness settings and 3 modes - flashing, steady, or triple-pulse. You can use the programming nub to toggle master on/off as well. Uses 4 CR2016 batteries. I’ve had it to the range a half dozen times and dry-fire practice at home for the past two or three months, and the batteries are still going strong.

 

[derek45]

nope

try one on a sunny day

spend the money on training

 

[.38 Special]

I think Chicharrones has it about right. For my money, a laser on a snub makes a lot of sense. The short sight radius makes those guns awfully hard to shoot well, and something unobtrusive like a laser integrated into a grip frame isn't going make the gun significantly harder to conceal. A lightweight S&W with Crimson Trace installed might make for a pretty decent summer carry piece.

 

[CapnMac]

Never gelled for me. Too bright in dim conditions; not bright enough in full dark; sporadic in daylight.
For me, they magnified instability, and encouraged "chasing the dot" rather than "relaxing into the hold."
RDS work far better for me.
YMMV.

My favorite form factor was the guide-rod installs, followed by the Crimson Trace grip installs. (Switching to support hand use on the clock always vexed me with the CT, though--that's me, 100% subjective).

Now, on a PCC, where you have fewer worries bout form factors, there, they have a sweet spot for me.

 

[Styx]

Kahr K9 and and K40 both have lazer grips. Have a light lazer combo attachment on my M&P Shield and LCR 357.

They aren't for every situation or environment, but they have their place and benifits.

 

[SwampWolf]

I think if I flew an airplane I would not use auto-pilot much, if at all.

With that attitude and at your age, you wouldn't find me in the passenger's seat. For one thing it'd be about impossible to buckle-up my seat belt while wearing a parachute and holding a fire extinguisher in one hand and a Bible in the other.

But I agree. I'm too long in the tooth to start focusing on the target instead of the front sight.

 

[Iwsbull]

I have a couple with lasers on them mainly for my son as he has some vision problems that preclude iron sight use ( ocular albinism and nystagmus). The favorite one is the CT grip with green laser on a 1911, I will admit it can make you lazy and still get good accuracy from any position, can’t think of a better self defense sighting system. I remember watching Jeff Quinn do a video on them and was impressed.

 

[AK Hunter]

I have a laser on my 9mm AR pistol just for hip shooting the falling gong rack at the range.
Other shooters freak out when I hold the gun down low & hit all the gongs.
The laser is strong enough to see it on the gongs even at mid day.

 

[Hugger-4641]

I have a couple on pistols and on my Ar-15's. I use them for terrozing the cat more than I do for shooting, but there have been a couple practical uses. If you already have laser mounted underneath, it makes it very nice for switching out scopes and re-zeroing. I have an Atn X-sight that I move among a couple different rifles and the laser shows up in it very nicely, day or night.
I have also used one a pistol to practice retention shooting. I draw and point first, then squeeze the laser switch to check my POA.
I have also used it to eradicate a couple small varmints. Some will freeze when you point in front of them, which then gives a better opportunity to make the shot.

 

[bangswitch]

I have a reflex (green-dot) sight with a laser beneath it, and have the two co-witness when the laser is on. I see the green dot just above the laser, both dots are 2mm in the sights. the laser is sighted for 50 yards and the green dot for 100. I use the laser as a dim light/night-sight, it's mounted on my M4 300BLK.